Timing device.



I. L. REEVES.

TIMING DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 20, 191 1.

Patented "July 9, 1912.

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IRA L. BEEVES, OF SOUTH NATICK, MASSAGHUSETTS.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

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Application filed June 20, 1911. Serial No. 634,337.

tom to practise witha fire arm. Sometimes ball cartridges are used and at others, blanks, while still in others no shots at all are fired, and it is usual to fire either actu ally or figuratively a given number of shots in a prescribed interval. Various expedients have been adopted for insuring this result, but they are more or less involved in their character and are not always trust- -worthy and accurate. I provide a timing device which is preferably adapted for connection to and separation from, at will, a fire arm and by which the marksman himself or the individual directly handling said fire arm can secure an absolutely reliable measurement of time which for illustration may be several seconds. The amount of time, however, is not a matter of consequence as is the provision of means for definitely marking the same. It is conceivable that the device might be a permanent part of the fire arm, but as a matter of convenience I prefer that itbe in the form of an attachment.

4 The device involves broadly a timing member and a carrier therefor, said timing member being shiftably supported by said carrier for movement into several distinct positions and being preferably thus operated automatically. In the present case the timing member has an ineffective position which is occupied thereby when the fire arm is in a preparatory position, and an effective or time measuring position, the act of moving the fire arm to aiming or firing position shifting automatically the said timing device to its operative relation, while preferably when the fire arm is returned to the preparatory position an opposite or return movement is imparted to said timing member.

In the drawings accompanying and forminn" part of the present specification 1 show in detail one convenient form of embodiment of the invention which to enable those skilledv in the art to practise the same will beset forth fully in the following description, while the novelty of the invention will be ncluded in the claims succeeding said description. From such observations it will be apparent that I do not limitmyself to such disclosure; I may depart therefroini in several respects within the, scope ofm invention included in said claims. a

As already intimated the timingmember' may vary radically as to character. "f'As represented in the said drawings and as Will am hereinafter appear it consists of a casing and a fluid in said casing, said fluid being freely movable from one portion of-the cas:

'ing to another and constituting therefore one simple time measuring means.- Said casing may, for example, consist of a glass body closed at its ends and divided into two portions or chambers, and the fluid may consist of a mass of sand or equivalent substance by virtue of which when the timing member is moved from is inactive to its active position, the sand. or analogous material can gravitate from one portion of the casing to another to measureoii thetime and whereby when said timing member is moved toward its inactive posit-ion, the sub-. stance in question can return by gravity to its original position so as to be in readiness to again measure off time when required.

Referring to said drawings: Figure l is a side elevation of a ride provided with a timing device including my invention. Fig. 2 is a cross section on the line 2-2 of Fig.

1 looking toward the muzzle of the gun.

Fig. 3 is a detail view of a portion of the barrel of the rifle with the timing device geously associated. Said timing device can be connected to the piece at any suitable place, it being shown connected with the barrel thereof at or near the muzzle. Said timing device includes in its make-up a timing member such as that denoted in a general way by 3 and a carrier such as that denoted in a general way by i. As shown the carrier comprises a yoke 5 provided with a shank 6 terminating in a clip 7' equipped with a set screw 8, the clip being adapted to detachably embrace the barrel of the rifle 2 and to be held rigidly thereon by the set screw 8, This is a convenient form of carrier in thatthe same can be made in one piece from a suitable strip of metal. As Will be inferred from the statements already made any other suitable type of carrier may be employed, the character thereof depending upon whether the device is-to be used as a permanent part of the arm or as an attachment. As already stated the timing device might be employed as a permanent part of the piece but in a service arm I prefer that the device he made as an attachment.

The timing member 3 preferably includes a casing and a time measuring fluid therein. This casing and the fluid may difier greatly, although a glass tube 9 adapted tocontain sand 10 answers advantageously in this connection. The glass tube 9 is shown incased by a protecting shell 11 pivotally supported as at 12 between the branches of the yoke 5. To limit the swing ofthe timing memher 8 an adjustable stop device as 13 may be provided, said stop device as shown consisting of a screw tapped through the cross bar of the yoke and adapted to engage the inner closed end or ferrule of the shell 11, which as will be observed, has opposite slots to facilitate the inspection of the glass casing 9. The latter is shown consisting of two enlarged portions, chambers or bulbs I l and 15, and a connecting neck 16, the said sand or equivalent material being adapted to flow by way of the connecting neck 16 from one portion l t to the other portion 15 and vice versa as the timing member 3 is shifted or swung back and forth The timing member might be considered to have two positions, oneaninctlcctive position as represented in 'Fig. 4: and the other an "efiective position as indicated in Figs, 1, 2 and 3, the timing member being automatically movable into said positions as the fire arm is shifted. I might state at this point that the barrel of the rifle 2 as shown in Fig. 2 extends at an upper angle, this being the position the barrel occupies when the rifle is held in a preparatory or ready position or immediately prior to firing or aiming: At this time the timing member 3 is at a slight inclina tion to and at the rear of a vertical line in tersecting its axis of motion, whereby the sand can pass from the chamber 15 into the chamber 1d as already indicated or at least a part of such sand can accomplish this effect, the sand during the measuring action flowing from the chamber 14 to the chamber 15. As the piece is brought to the shoulder, the barrel thereof is lowered to a horizontal position or approximately so, and on this motion the timing member 3 is thrown rapidly forward, and when it crosses the vertical line it can drop quickly to the position shown in Fig. 3, by reason of which the sand can gravitate from the chamber 14; to the chamber 15, the gravitation of the sand measuring the time. I

have mentioned the fact that the timing 7 member has active and inactive positions. By active position. it will be understood that I mean the one which said part occupies during measurement of time, the inactive position being the other one thereof, although when said member is in such inactive position, the sand can freely gravitate from one part of its container or casing to another so as to be in readiness at the proper point formeasuring off the time,

In Fig. 5 I have shown a revolver 20 provided with a carrier 21 and a timing member 22 constructed and operating exactly like the parts already described, the revolver being in what is known as a raise pistol position or that to which it is brought just prior to firing, the timing member 22 be ing in what I have termed its inactive position. When the revolver is lowered to firing position, the timing member is quickly and automatically shifted to active or timing position.

As will be understood my invention does not reside in any specific construction but rather in certain broad relations, one of which is the combination with a fire arm of timing means automatically thrown into action as saidfire arm is moved from a preparatory to a firing or aiming position. I have already intimated in the initial statements of the present description what some of these other broad relations are.

I When the fire arm is in the preparatory position which in the rifle would be What is known as ready and in the pistol at what is termed raise pistol, the angular position of the piece varies with different individuals and to insure proper positioning of the timing member 3 under the, varying condi tion, the adjustable stop 13 is provided.

What I claim. is: 1. The combination of a fire arm, and timing means operatively associated therewith and automatically settable in time measuring relation by and on the movement a of said fire arm.

2. The combination of a fire arm, and

timing means operatively associated therewith and automatically settable into time-- measuring relation by and on the movement of said fire arm from a preparatory to an aiming or firing position.

3. The combination of a firearm, a casing, and a gravitative substance in said casing, said casing being movably connected with the fire arm and said substance being movable in one direction in said casing when saidfire arm is in a preparatory position and said casing being shiftable automatically by and on the movement of the fire arm to firing position to cause said substance to move in the opposite direction toposition to preparatory position,

' 5. The combination of a carrier, a casing movably connected wlth said carrier, and

"a gravitative substance constituting time measuring means in said casing, the carrier having means for detachably connecting it p with the fire arm.

6. The combination of a carrier, a casing movably connected with said carrier, and a gravitative substance constituting time measuring means in said casing, the carrier having a clip for fitting the barrel of a fire arm.

7. The combination of a fire arm, a cas ing pivotally connected with said fire arm whereby on the movement of the fire arm into a preparatory position, the casing is shifted to one position and whereby on the movement of the fire arm to firing position, the casing is moved to a second position, and a fluid substance in 'the casing and adapted to fiow from one portion to another thereof when the casing is in its difierent positions. I

8. The combination of a fire arm, a transparent casing 'movably connected with said fire arm whereby when the fire arm is moved to a. preparatory position the casing will be moved to one position and whereby when the fire arm is moved to a firing po'sition the casing will be moved to another position, and a granular fiuid substance in said casing adapted to flow from one portion to another portion thereof in the diflerent positions of the casing.

9. The combination of a fire arm, a transparent casing comprising two bulbs, and a connecting neck, movably connected with said fire arm, whereby when the fire arm is moved to a preparatory position said casing will be shifted to one position and whereby when said fire arm is moved to a firing position the casing will be moved to another position, and a granular substance in the casing' adapted to flow from bulb to bulb thereof by way of said neck when said casing is in its respective positions.

10. The combination of a carrier provided with means for detachably clamping the same to the barrel of a fire arm, and a'cas-- ing pivotally connected with said carrier for swinging movement, and a fluid gravitative substance in said casing.

11. The combination of a carrier provided with means for detachably connecting it with a fire arm, a transparent casing movably connected with said carrier for shift ing movement whereby when the carrier is moved the casing will be shifted thereto, and a granular gravitative substance in said casing adapted to flow from one portion to another thereof when the casing is in difierent positions.

12. The combination of a fire arm, and timing means operatively associated therewith and automatically set-table into timemeasuring relation by and on the movement of said fire arm in one direction, said timing means being automatically returnable to the initial position thereof by and on the movement of said fire arm in a different direction.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature F. E. ANDERSON, .HEATH SUTHERLAND. 

